An age of identity crisis

There is clearly something in the water.

Apart from reliving some of Billy Bragg's great sing along tunes ( with added edge) I attended his talk on "Can Britishness be defined in a new bill of rights?" and was interested to see how Bragg would devlop the debate.

In truth, and as the audience pointed out, his Britishness debate was perhaps more closely linked to him defining a progressive and left view of Englishness, rather than "Britishness" per se. The purpose of his admirable journey being to grapple with issues of identity in order to counter more extreme views promoted by the BNP. Bragg understood why people might feel a dual identity (e.g. Welsh-British) but I'm not sure he was tuned in to the impacts of those seeing a single national (non-English) identity as can be found around Welsh blog land.

I then return home to find David Banks in the Daily Post writing about Wales "Resigned to being a nation divided" and some August ramblings about the north-south divide and cultural differences, seemingly fostered by Labour MPs.

Must check my water suply.

Hello again

Having spent several days in a tent at Greenbelt 07 there a number of trhings to reflect on but I come home to another musical link just down the road. Greenblet is an incredible mix of music, art and thought provoking faith and I listened with interest to Billy Bragg, Douglas Alexander, Martyn Joseph, stand up comics, and many more who were unknown to me prior to the weekend but have left many a thought to ponder in the coming weeks.

Bush throws a last dice ?

The enemy would not follow America home, but perhaps it has arrived some time ago and prior to 9/11. Perhaps the battering in Iraq is somehow of symbolic importance to Bush while the ideological battle should be taken up in other ways. Bush may have a difficult closing period.

Its all gone bangers and mash

As decisions are taken on the priorities for Police time it seems one got their CBM - community bangers manager - in a twist.

Can't get it right - even in August

I suspect some bright spark in the Tory research team is feeling the heat if even a part of today's farce is true. It might have been a bright idea to grab some headlines in the August silly season by listing NHS services under threat. Yet the claims are melting like snow in the summer sun (remember that ?).

Oops !

Don't slide in to nationalist speak

It seems lots of people are sliding in to nationalist speak and if the priorities of the people are to be met then we should focus on health, economy, environment etc. It seems Glyn Davies has now wandered down routes shaped by nationalsit thinking. Why, what has Alex Salmond's barmy paper in Scotland got to do with our situation in Wales ?

So I will spend the next period pondering a few of the ideas contained in One Wales and seeing what progress we need to make as the Assembly returns from recess.

Cofis of f to winning start

Well it was wet and heavy going but Caernarfon managed an entertaining enough 3-1 over Port Talbot. A pretty even match in many ways with Caernarfon going 2-1 ahead before Port Talbot missed a very late penalty (fine savw from Caernarfonb's keeper)and then Caernarfon went to the other end to head home for 3-1.

Town seem to have signed some skilful players (Scouse accents a plenty yet again) and there could be some entertinment in the weeks ahead. Port Talbot a little unlucky not to get the draw but in the heavy conditions their larger players struugled a little more.

Meanwhile the Baggies ran up a win and new signings came good.

League of Wales kicks off - go and give support

Well it is often derided, and finances are obviously in short supply compared to the global investors in the Premiership, but the Principality League of Wales kicks off today and I would urge people to go and support one of the teams. In Arfon we can follow Bangor City and Caernarfon Town and today it will be the visit of Port Talbot to the Oval which provides my afternoon's entertainment. Best wishes also to Llangefni Town as they enter the top level for the first time.

League of Wales kicks off - go and give support

Well it is often derided, and fianances are obviously short compared to the global investors in the Premiership, but the Principality League of Wales kicks off today and I would urge people to go and support one of the teams. In Arfon we can follow Bangor City and Caernarfon Town and today it will be the visit of Port Talbot to the Oval which provides my afternoon's entertainment. Best wishes also to Llangefni Town as they enter the top level for the first time.

Rebuild and strengthen

Not Wales 20:20 but the new signings by the Baggies - but I feel another big cheque is due this week - I wonder how much Luton get if we sell Davis to Spurs ?

Wales 20:20

A couple of commentators thought I might have jumped the gun in my blogging about the new discussion forum but, some 24 hours on and having read the pamphlet in full, I remain with mixed feelings.

I have no doubt that debate is good and never to be feared in a democracy. It is partly why I enjoy blogland, not because it contains the future of democracy, but adds to debate.

Huw makes a number of points that many will share. We can have Labour majorities - PR simply makes it more challenging. I feel however that Huw loks at the bleaker side of May's results, I perhaps see the glass as half full. Loosing some seats, but doing comparatively better than other parts of the UK. After some distraction we should now be able to focus on delivering major parts of Labour's manifesto as the senior partner in a coalition. I am sure Scottish Labour would like to be in our position.

Yet review and reform are right. The Party itself is doing that and we can all contribute. I'm not sure we need new Forums and websites to debate Party organisation and which I feel takes up a major part of the new pamphlet.

My impression of May 2007 - and factors hardly mentioned by Huw are Blair and Iraq, stay at home voters and yes I agree to an extent our decreased resources as a Party. However when the wind is against I feel we might have spent much more for not much return in the PR system.

Huw refers to a fresh intake of AMs but I am not sure what mechanism he proposes. People work hard to get elected and at both Westminster and Assembly levels do not often voluntarily opt to step aside for fresh blood. Nor does it always work - Sue Essex being a big loss in my opinion and we know the pain of imposing central solutions on local parties.

Clearly Labour, of all parties, faces the big challenge in closing any talk of a widening gulf between MPs abd AMs. Could it be we had no commonly agreed vision of where we wished to actually take devolution after delivering on Labour's referendum ? The shortfal on the Richard Commission recommendations was noteable sign of any gulf. So that is common ground as a task to be resolved.

Neither does Huw address the linguistic cultural issues that I feel are part of political life in modern Wales. Eluned Morgan has asked how we are to reach out and embrace potential support in western/Welsh speaking parts of Wales ?

Huw feared some would react angrily. Perhaps he had Paul Flynn in mind !

For my part I see no need to fear debate. I have several reasons to disagree with elements of Huw's analysis

* many of these points about organisation could have been tackled internally,
* it is not just resources,
* what about Blair/Iraq and May 2007 ?
* perhaps Wales fared better than Huw admits ? (although not well enough)
* modern politics requires relatively broad churches working to a common good,
* can Wales reach outwards across current cultural divides (not for example by missing the Eisteddod)

So there is some thought generated by the pamphlet and new blog.

Finally is the language wise. Talk of not being fit for purpose (in bold print) is, I feel, aimed at generating controversy for its own sake. Perhaps distracting from oterh elements of the pamphlet.

Mud glorious mud

Well that was the Anglesey show and a chance to compare notes with Albert Owen MP on recent political developments. However main issue today was mud glorious mud after the overnight and torrential rain. Forgot my camera so can't show - how boring.

Language not suited to Wales 2020

For those waiting with drawn breath it seems that Huw Lewis is going to stir up debate by saying Labour is "unfit for purpose". If`true (and not just headline grabbing spin) this seems a little unwise and a view with which I would take difference. Wales 2020 will be a new forum for debate - is it not the already the title of a Cymdeithas campaign ?

Vaughan up the wrong tree ?

Ordovicius flags up Vaughan Rodericks blog in which VR starts to reassess his views on the timing of the Westminster election. He reviews and reassesses seats and suggests Betty Williams should go for Arfon.

VR may not be tuned to recent announcements at the Aberconwy and Arfon Labour CLPs, which I will leave for him to research, but information suggests one of these seats is about to run a full selection process and it is the Arfon constituency who have appointed a secretary for the selection proceudre.

Gey your CVs ready.

20,000 % inflation

There are many terrible aspects to the horror that is Zimbabwe but the simple economic fact reported in the Guardian that inflation runs at 20,000% shows an economic crisis that will keep in the country in despair beyond Mugagbe's years.

I wonder at what point the telephone book numbers involved with such inflation become meaningless - 500%, 1000%, 5,000% ???

Footie kicks off

Well off we go for another season of a pain but being married to an Evertonian my season kicked off at Goodison Park and a chance to see whether Jason Koumas would start well. Well in truth it was one of Jason's less effective games and it was Arteta who shone in the misfield battle.

Of course Goodison is in many one of the last of the old fashioned grounds and EFC and their fans are engaged in an active debate over a new ground outside the city boundaries and funded off the back of a Tesco supermarket (don't tell Cymdeithas).

Anyway the Baggies lost so we could be in for a long season ahead.

Dafydd stamps his feet !

Judging by the letters page and corrections in the Daily Post it seems Dafydd Wigley has thrown a strop that anyone should suggest his Eisteddfod speech was a criticism of red-green. Dafydd is fulsome in his explanation that all he had in mind was a call for more dosh from London.

Now this is where I think its more difficult as it is simply not practical for Plaid to now sign up for a programme of government that is delivered out of hard negotiation and then expect someone else to fund major chunks of it. It means either (a) Plaid and Ieuan don't undertstand the costs of their programme - thus I agree dragging Labour down the same road, or (b) they are not really serious about focussing on delivery.

Perhaps specific bids for joint priorities might get some chance of attention but I doubt if generalised calls for more dosh will ever succeed. Otherwise we await the outcome of spending reviews, but with less stable economic conditions I don't expect much. However some pre election sweeties might prove useful to Wales. is that right - perhaps not but it is where we currently are and no use pretending otherwise.

Hot on Y Maes

Diwrnod boeth iawn ar Maes yr Eisteddfod ac gyfle am sgwrs gyda nifer o wynebu o gwahannol cefndir - sedd un o cryfderau y Maes.

Scorching weather on the Maes and a chance to catch up with various friends and acquaintanes. Including a chat with Dylan Iorwerth about the Welsh language print scene and whether we can cope with Y Dydd as well as Golwg, Y Cymro, (and the Herald Cymraeg insert in the Daily Post) amongst others. I sense no one is quite convinced about the market for a daily Welsh langauge paper, and how much capacity is their in the market ? What did the seemingly positive tone of the red-green deal mean in this respect ?

A claim to Welsh cultural fame as I played football (aged some 7-15 years old) with Dylan who is a winner of the "Goron". I am sure it was Baggies influence that drove him to greater things ! (Not his support of the Spurs as I recall)

No doubt this revelation may lead some to question Dylan's choice of company but I find him an interesting, amicable and passionate acquaintance.

It's a beautiful game !

Well I never thought I'd see the day but it seems Pele has had enough of adverts on erectile misfunction and returns to football with the Baggies. Its a beautiful game and there will surely be a rush for Baggies shirts with the name Pele on the back.

I remember him (shurely sum mistake !) in the 1970 world cup and I am sure he brings skill and experience to the Hawthorns.

Crachach - an easy hit ?

Lots of excitement in Welsh blogland after Dylan Jones-Evans (like myself a candidate who missed out in May) posts on the "crachach", clealrly a group feared/despised/hated in various degrees. They may exist, as in other societies, but I commented as follows :

"On the substantive point it is surely no surprise that societies contain some political/ societal "elites" and the job of the rest is to unsettle them and create our alternative structures.Just don't get sucked in and then change is more possible. Perhaps reflecting that devolution in itself is not the solution but the policies / values that drive us".

So we might get more value from exploring common values amongst those who are not the crachach to generate more change- but then we might be infiltrated by the crachach - and more paranoia generated. In addition there are clearly problems in how some perceive the C, who is in and who is out ? Perhaps someone should open those blog polls I see in other places to poll on the C !

Oh well off to Mold/Wyddgrug to see the crachach.

Foot and mouth

I work many miles from Surrey but today the hand of foot and mouth reached me at work in Ynys Mon with general advice to minimise contact with farming lands/workers as a precautionry measure to minimise risks. Very sensible but let us hope the restrictions are lifted quicly, the industry heading back to normal. Oh and all buy tickets for Sioe Mon/Anglesey show in solidarity.

Yesterday's man bites back

Crikey I didn't expect Dafydd Wigley to answer so quickly but no sooner had I wondered aloud about DWs stance on the coalition that he raced to the Eisteddfod Maes to tell the world.

Is this really a query about finance or another shot from the "Dewis" faction in the hope of joining others (in both parties) trying to shake the foundations of red-green government.

Some words from AFJ on Red-Green

Gwe usefully highlights a forthcoming publication from the IWA about the red-green process. Some comments about Jane Hutt but also some words from Arfon's AM Alun Ffred Jones :

"The book also reveals why Plaid Cymru opted to be a junior partner in a Labour-led government, rather than choosing what became known as the Rainbow alternative, with the party’s leader Ieuan Wyn Jones as First Minister in a coalition with the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats. Plaid was divided on this question, but the Rainbow deal would have required the three Opposition parties to devise a reason for a motion of no confidence.

As Plaid Cymru’s Arfon AM Alun Ffred Jones, who switched sides for this reason, explained: “One we’d installed Rhodri Morgan as First Minister, the game had changed. I felt we couldn’t play fast and loose with votes of no confidence. There would have to be a credible reason for making a challenge. I would have felt uncomfortable in manufacturing a vote of no confidence.”

So Aron was rainbow but moved as the debate moved on. At least a confirmation of elements of the process and debate. Did Wigley agree with Ffred?

Bright young Tory hope defects to Labour

Bright young Tory hope defects to Labour in response to Brown's leadership
- Moderate Conservatives joining Labour, says Gordon Brown

One of the Tories' brightest young politicians in Wales has defected to the Labour Party, praising Gordon Brown's strong leadership as the main reason for his switch.

26-year-old school teacher David Anstee was a member of a powerful Welsh Conservative Policy Group which wrote the party's 2007 Assembly election manifesto. Today Prime Minister Gordon Brown welcomed him to the party, saying that moderate conservatives were responding to his call to join Labour to build a better Britain. David Anstee will be joined today by Rhondda Welsh Assembly Member Leighton Andrews at the New Assembly building.

Mr Anstee cut his political teeth as the only Conservative to stand for election as a councillor in Rhondda in over 20 years. He was the vice chair of the Rhondda Conservatives. But he has resigned his membership and applied to join Labour.

GORDON BROWN said:

"I am pleased that David listened to my call for moderate conservatives to join the Labour Party and help build a better Britain. I welcome him to the party and look forward to hearing of his positive contribution in the future."

DAVID ANSTEE said:

"Like many political moderates I had hoped that David Cameron's leadership of the Conservatives would herald a changed party that reflected the concerns of the people of our country.

"But unfortunately the Conservative Party has shown itself to be incapable of change. It has pandered to the views of its right wing whenever it has faced a serious test.

"In contrast, I have been really impressed by Gordon Brown's leadership. His strength and vision for Britain has been inspiring. We need a serious leader for serious times, to meet the challenges of security, global warming and housing."

LEIGHTON ANDREWS said:

"This will prove to be another blow to the leadership of David Cameron in London and Nick Bourne in Cardiff. David Anstee is precisely the kind of talent they want to attract to their party. But he sees the future of Britain as being best served by the Labour Party.

"Like so many others, David has realised that Labour is the only party that can be trusted to stick to its principles and govern in the interests of all. He knows that Labour offers policies of substance, not empty PR stunts followed by sudden lurches to the right."

Ends


Notes:

In a speech to Labour's National Policy Forum on 14th July, Gordon Brown said: "As we reach out to all who share our vision of a better Britain of rising aspirations and new and better opportunities I urge all who share our values - progressives in all areas of Britain and moderate Conservatives - to join us in making Britain the country it can be."

Time for "swper" (supper)

In her recent weekly column in Y Herald Cymraeg Angharad Tomos floated the idea of sharing "swper", some breaking of bread, to explore language issues. This generated some debate on maes-e where a number of contributors seem to want to leave matters to Cardiff Bay, and not contaminate themselves by contact with unworthies like myself.

However I can confirm I would be more than happy to share some time chatting to Angharad and if I make it across to Mold then we might get time for coffee and a chat. I would happily explore the impacts of the language rights debate as it is an interesting area of public policy development.

Time for "swper" (supper)

In her recent weekly column in Y Herald Cymraeg Angharad Tomos floated the idea of sharing "swper", some breaking of bread, to explore language issues. This generated some debate on maes-e where a number of contributors seem to want to leave matters to Cardiff Bay, and not contaminate themselves by contact with unworthies like myself.

However I can confirm I would be more than happy to share some time chatting to Angharad and if I make it across to Mold then we might get time for coffee and a chat. I would happily explore the impacts of the language rights debate as it is an interesting area of public policy development.

"Sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander"

A chance to review the local papers and nice to see my old sparring partner Mr Trfeof Davies taking up issues in the letters page of the Caernarfon Herald. Trefor is upset that I had the temerity to suggest that in spite of the new era of red-green politics Labour should continue to scrutinise Plaid led Gwynedd council and events at organisations like Cymad.

He reflects on the red-green deal and states that for Labour "To join up with the Tories would have been political suicide" - that is why Labour would never do it - and exactly why Plaid reached their conclusion.

It will be interesting to see what reaction the new Ministers gather as they strut the Maes this week. Surely Rhodri Glyn and others deserve the same warm reception as previous Ministers given that change has not yet been delivered.

Back for Steddfod !

So after a few fine days watching the dolphins in Cei Newydd. I have kept clear of the news and apart from some stuff about Great Whites (I admit I didn't see them in New Quay !) and some football transfer stories I don't have much idea what went on until this morning's F&M story.

So what does blog land tell me about the week that passed : well I am back in time to catch Normal Mouth flagging up some pre Staddfod nonsense from Adam Price, and how could I survive without Lembit's latest antics (is he that scared of Glyn Davies ?), even Tribune is running with a Rhodri to retire early story - "has told friends he is to step down as First Minister and Labour leader - possibly as early as next year".

Paul Flynn offers some comments on today's foot and mouth outbreak while the Guardian as often turns my mind to the scale of disasters elsewhere in the world.

So a simple selection of things that caught my eye on return to blog land and a chnace for my reflection in the days ahead.